The doctor did a few clicks on the laptop and then confirmed that my son
received all the immunizations for whooping cough (also known as
pertussis).

"Even though your son got his shots there is still a small possibility he
could have it. Since your other children have been vaccinated, it is
unlikely they could get it, but if he has it, they would need to be treated
with antibiotics as a precaution."

My son did not have whooping cough. During the few days it took to receive
the results, I was grateful all of my children were most likely protected
from it.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
immunizations can help protect your child from contracting 16 different
diseases. Some of these illnesses could be deadly, including the flu. You
can see a list of recommended vaccinations and the ages they should be
administered at cdc.gov/vaccines.

Some parents are worried about their child contracting autism from
receiving vaccinations. A study by the National Institutes of Health
conducted in 2014 of 1.2 million children concluded there was no link
between autism and vaccinations.

Here are 5 Reasons You Should Vaccinate Your Children

Saves your child's life and others

In 2014 the CDC released a press statement which stated, over the past 20
years immunizations have prevented 21 million hospitalizations and 732,000
deaths. These successful statistics are related to the creation of the
Vaccines for Children (VFC) program, which was developed in response to a
reemergence of measles in 1994. This program is a federally-funded program
that provides vaccines at no cost to children who qualify due to lack of
insurance or income.

More specifically, diphtheria, polio, influenza (flu), measles and
bacterial meningitis are all diseases that have been deadly for children;
however due to vaccinations, the number of deaths has either decreased or
is nonexistent. In the 1920s, every year over 150,000 worldwide would die
from diphtheria, but due to immunizations today there are only a few cases
a year. Similarly, during 1916, the polio epidemic caused 6,000 deaths a
year in the U.S., but today it is considered eradicated due to
vaccinations, with the last known case in 1979.

There is a vaccination for the human papillomavirus (HPV) infections. The
HPV infection can lead to cancer in both men and women (cervical cancer).
HPV infections cause over 17,000 cancers in women and over 9,000 cancers in
men each year in the United States. By receiving this immunization it would
prevent contraction of the HPV infection, and the resulting cancers.

By getting your child vaccinated you are also saving other lives of people
who did not get immunized, which is referred to as head immunity. If a
certain percentage of a community is immune from a disease, it protects
those people who are not immune. An excellent example of when herd immunity
did not work was in 2010 when 10 infants under the age of 3 months (they
would not have received shots yet) died of whooping cough. The reasons they
were exposed to the illness are because there were 5,978 confirmed cases of
whooping cough in California due to either children not receiving
immunization or adults' immunity that had worn off over time.

Saves you and your child time and money

Doctors' visits, trips to the hospitals and medications are expensive. Even
if you have health insurance in the United States a hospital visit can cost
hundreds if not thousands of dollars. Annually 200,000 Americans are
hospitalized from flu-related complications. Most medical insurances will
cover the flu shot in full which would be free for the individual.

Being sick with an illness which could have been prevented with a
vaccination also results in missing time from work or school. Some people
miss up to 10 days of work when they are sick with the flu. And if your
children are sick, you might also have to miss work to care for them.

Economic Benefits for Society

According to analysis by the CDC, hospitalizations avoided and lives saved
through vaccination will save nearly $295 billion in direct costs and $1.38
trillion in total societal costs. The annual loss to the U.S. economy due
to the flu is $87.1 billion.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has made a commitment to increase
access to vaccines in poor countries. This is estimated to save $6.2
billion in treatment costs and $145 billion in production losses.

Side Effects are Rare

It is rare to have a serious side effect from receiving vaccinations. The
most common side effect is soreness in the area where the shot was
administered. The benefit of preventing a possible deathly disease far
outweighs the mild side effects from the immunization.

The Science Supports the Decision

There is a significant amount of research and statistics supporting the
benefits of receiving immunizations for children and adults. It also has
been scientifically proven to be safe and effective against preventing
contraction of the disease.

Cheryl Maguire holds a Master of Counseling Psychology degree. She is
married and is the mother of twins and a daughter. Her writing has been
published in Parents magazine, Upworthy, "Chicken Soup for the Soul: Count Your Blessings" and Your Teen Magazine. You can find her at Twitter @CherylMaguire05